Fuel systems often include one or more fuel injectors physically coupled to a fuel rail. The fuel injector receives fuel from the fuel rail at a fuel input and provides the fuel at a fuel output for use by the engine in response to an electrical signal. The fuel injector typically includes a male electrical connector for receiving the electrical signal. The electrical signal is produced by an electronic injection control system or other electrical control system and is provided via at least one conductor to the male electrical connector.
Heretofore, fuel injectors have been physically (e.g., mechanically) coupled to the fuel rail by a metal clip. The metal clip mechanically secures the fuel input of the injector to an injector cup of the fuel rail and ensures that the fuel injector is maintained in the injector cup when the fuel is pressurized. Typically, fuel injectors have been electrically coupled to the electronic engine control system via a separate wiring harness. The wiring harness includes a female electrical connector sized to receive the male electrical connector on the fuel injector. Utilizing a separate metal clip to mechanically attach the fuel injector to the fuel rail and a separate wiring harness to electrically connect the fuel injector to the electronic injection control system is disadvantageous because separate clips and harnesses are expensive and require separate assembly steps when installing the fuel injector. Thus, there is a need for a single unitary attachment device which mechanically mates the fuel injector to the fuel rail and electrically couples the fuel injector to the electronic injection control system.